114 



Tantalus in exudation on Acacia hoa. This species is not 

 common. In all 18 specimens were taken, including larvaa 



Mr, Swezej exhibited specimens and presented the following 

 notes : Since the beginning of the rainy weather in December, 

 vegetation has sprung up luxuriantly in the dry district of 

 Kaimuki, where everything appeared dead on the unoccupied 

 land. Amongst the revived vegetation are tangles of the 

 "morning glory," (Ipomoea tuherculata) growing over Lan- 

 tana and other bushes, and on stone walls. At the present time 

 the caterpillars of Sphin-x convolvuli may be seen in hundreds 

 and they have nearly stripped the leaves from the vines. They 

 are of all sizes from young to full grown ; and they vary in 

 color from nearly uniform green to nearly uniform black with 

 a close series between, in most of which the characteristic 

 pattern for the species shows. Harrison G. Dyar has described 

 the green form and the brown form in Entomological ISTews, 

 VI, p. 95-96, 1895. In this no mention is made of other 

 variations; but Poulton in Trans. Ent. Soc. London, p. 515- 

 554, 1888, gives full details of life history, and variations of 

 caterpillars, illustrated with two plates. 



Dr. Cobb remarked that at one time he found his morning 

 glory and sweet potato vines were eaten by these caterpillars. 

 At his suggestion they were offered to his chickens but they 

 refused to eat them; after a slight starvation they ate them 

 quite readily and he got rid of them by feeding them to the 

 fowls. Mr. Swezey thought that these caterpillars were an 

 exception to the rule in that he had so far bred no parasites 

 from them; Dr. Perkins replied that while the grown cater- 

 pillars were not parasitized, the very young stages were heavily 

 so. The native species of the same group were badly killed by 

 Tachvna and E cMhromorpha. 



FEBRUARY 7th, 1907 



The twenty-fifth regular meeting was held in the Library of 

 the Board of Agriculture and Forestry, Mr. Giffard in the 

 chair. 



Under miscellaneous business, the Secretary read a commun- 

 ication from the President in which he announced the generous 

 contributions, towards a Publication- Fund, by the following 

 firms: 



